Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-08-19

party of Texas try to follow differ ent
line Of policy and attempt patched up
compromise with prohibition or It's lead
ers, there will be continual dissensit n
within the party, and it will not have the
support OF The masses in the contest OF
1883. The tremendous majority inst
registered against the Yankee idea of
prohibition will prove this even to blind
man. /,
PARTY PLATFORMS AND THEIR OFFICE.
Galveston News, anti, There IS g
theory Of the party platform which would
make 1t s general repository Of political
science, in which should be formulated
and sheIved away enunCiations upon mat
tiers material and immaterial, living aud
dead. There is another which would
have it trim through the straits which d.
vide opposing creeds, without once head
ing for an issue OF public policy. The
one is wanting in plianCy; the other lacks |
in honest csndor. Between these eN
tremes of platitude and diplomatic phrss-
ing the mean is found which does alI the |
proper Office Of party enunciation. The |
platform of every politiCal party is, or i
should be, the application OF lis for-f
mulated Judgment to vital issues Of
public policy. And this applicationsI
should be direct snd pertinent,l
and not through the devious medium Of |
| specious and misleading words. There
is no need that any party should an-
nounce against the union Of church and
| state until there is g party promu CATION
! for such union. Politics is practical,
| business like method spilled to affairs of
state; end the useful and successful poll
! tician is he who, IN reasoning from small
things to great, eXtrscts the best wisdom
for making the application. The neces-
sary cOrol!ary Of the proposition that
party eDunClation Is the outgrOwth and
acceptance of rendered issues is tlat
whenever public policy is dangerously
impiDged by party enuLciatiCn the
duty of counter enunCiatiOn at once de
wolves upon the party holding to the
nounced. In brief, assertion on one
side and denial on the other are what
make up all issues, whether of fact or
principle, the two standing in correlative
relation to each other. Since the ascer-
! tainment of the result Of the recent cleo
ton number Of Democrats holding pro-
2 hibitiOn ideas-and they of the highest
probity and intelligence-have publicly
denied the necessity for Democratic enun-
citation upCn the doctrine Cf state prOhi-
bition. In so denying they seem to the
News to have ignored or underTated the
responsibility cast upon the parry by q
{ distinctly rendered issue, as also of the
. result Of S popular election in which II
d mey be fairly said that reputably large
: ms iority of the Democratic voters of the
state pronounced against state prohibition
They seem also not to have given proper
t weight to the respective attitudes IN
Il which the prohibition and anti-prohioi-
{ ton Democrat stands In relation 10 thi:
/ question. The former advocates prohi
= bit!on, not because his Democratic Greco
$ compels him to the advocacy, but because
o according to his Democratic lights-he
Il is thereto permitted by the silence OF his
II party platform, with the ultimate CODclu-
sion that prohibition is not undemocratic
l. The latter opposes prohibition because
|, in his judgment, 1t broadly challenge
- his Democratic creed, thus making the op
Is posing q duty demanded by his part
Il conscience. From their respective p0liti
e cal standpoints the first advocates be
II cause it Is not forbidden; the second op
y poses because it is forbidden
II With one it is q matter of politics
IS indifferences; with the other it |
QuebllOu u pCIllIC6I COuSCISuCe
ST SO that without imputlng want jof polit
IL eel morality to the prohibition Democra
lie there is reason why the question OF ethiC
OF entering into his anti prohibitio
ne brothers. consideration should not be en-
ag tirely apparent to him to which failure t
VS. perceive is to be attributed his denial {
De the necessity for platform enuDciatior
ne 1t is fairly within the present scope t
ne add that the proposition that any decla
ne ration on prohibition by state organizs
W ton should be preceded by and framed /
III accordance with the national enunciatio
OF seems to be at variance with the propt
lie office and extent of convention formulI
T. ting. When the Republican psrty-th
only formidable national organic.
ne ton opposing the Democratic part
IT, shall have admitted prohib
ne ton into its plato m of prime
It. pies the duty of conference.-the wi
ne for the first time devolve upon nation
co Democratic convention. 1t may furth
ny be said that platform ma kers of the par
IL have found no Other office for the wo
's- "sumptusry' for the past twenty ii
81 wears than to characterize and denoun
O. the spirit Of the Maine, Iowa and Hans
IL laws. In considering whether the du
no of taking the initiative rests with the sta
Tor or national organization, our theory
ne government, as we'll as party usage, Wou
Ia seem to point to the states as the prima
So, sources of authoritative enunciatic
ne However this may be, q necessity seel
aiu to rest upon the Democratic party
ol- Texas which the national party has L
aus yet been put to meet.
20
ro- LOOK WELL TO DEMOCRATS BY PROBE
we SION.
nat San Antonio Express (anti) The E
in press is not the advocate of persecuti
rse or of unnecessary severity in the mat
Qld of recognizing the Democratic party
be- Texas, but there are certain duties
'ity true Democrats of the state owe to the
In selves. In the reorganization which !
sin cent circumstances have rendered an
ion perative performance no man should
rty. retained in the active ranks who does !
ne, absolutely and unequivocally renounce
hat allegiance to the prohibition party q
anti solemnly promise to sever his connect
lat with the same. In primary meetings,
who the choice of delegates to conventions
cal any class, no one should be Intrus
| roa ~ apU dutv up1oaG